During a family visit at Bahrain’s notoriously brutal Jaw Prison that lasted for over an hour and a half, Parweez reportedly delivered his last will and testament.

“I do not know when I am going to die, but I am going to die,” he said.

Describing Manama’s current crackdown on dissent as “a policy of oppression, injustice, hypocrisy and disbelief,” Parweez vowed to continue battling for the rights of others “until the last breath”.

The 71-year old was arrested in 2011 for his role in the kingdom’s popular uprising and sentenced to 15 years in prison. He is the country’s eldest prisoner of conscience and a leading Shiite dissident.

On Tuesday he also told his family that his health has deteriorated and that he suffers from “pain in his bones and head”. His visitors later expressed their shock over Parweez’s health condition, revealing that he also had trouble walking.